STUDIO NOTES: The next time a guy bursts in and declares, “Trouble at the old mill!” and the next guy asks, “What kind of trouble?” the answer will be, “The kind of trouble we’re in because our competitor just recorded his record with Andy Sneap at Backstage Studio and it absolutely kills!”

Nestled in the sticks of the vicinity of (the Sheriff of) Nottingham, England, Backstage Studio is an old farm converted into a recording studio. All rustic architecture, an SSL G-series board, and a heaven of guitar amps for all devotees of crunch and distortion, Backstage has fully redeemed farm living by making godly metal after godly metal album. “The building dates back to 1698, which, you know, is twice as old as America”, owner Andy Sneap says with a laugh. “It used to be a dairy farm, but it had not been used in 12 to 13 years. The live rooms used to be pig stables, believe it or not.”

It is here that Sneap, Backstage’s owner, has become the go-to guy in the hard and heavy world, spurring huge successes with bands like Opeth, Killswitch Engage, Soulfly, Nevermore, Exodus, Kreator, and Caliban, and, considering the price, he wouldn’t have it any other way. “It’s definitely cheaper here. You go to London and the price of living, and real estate for studios, is extortionate.”

So, given it’s isolated location, what view should you expect when visiting to record the heaviest metal of your life? Pastoral hills filled with cows, lambs, and sheep (no goats, sadly). Sneap advises against getting too attached to the animals during tracking breaks. “We’re renting a neighboring field out to farmers, and two lambs are off to the slaughterhouse on Tuesday. I’m a little sad about it; I’ve become quite attached to them.”

The trick (for all you sensitive metal-types) is not to name them, unless you’re going to call them things like “Lunch” and “Dinner.” So, assuming you are as hungry as we are, maybe you should go ahead and check them . . . err . . . the studio out at www.andysneap.com.